Mission Malfoy and Zabini
by LittleRedOne
Summary: Ginny becomes aware of the very real possibility that Draco Malfoy and Blaise Zabini will become Death Eaters after school. Not able to settle with that, she decides she has to do something about it. Pre-HBP Threeshot and short epilogue.
1. First Encounters

**A/N: **I like to explore with writing friendship fics and since I'm fond of both the Draco/Ginny and Blaise/Ginny pairing I wanted to try them all together as friends. I didn't favor one boy over the other (despite the title) so there will be relatively equal amounts of Draco and Blaise dialogue. There is no romance in this fic so if you're looking for that I'm sorry but you won't find it here. This was a long process to write and I've been adding and editing it everyday for quite a few weeks. Since I had the day off I decided to finish this – I have all but the very ending written and that's only because I'm having a hard time making it seem final enough to be considered an end spot. It was supposed to be a long oneshot, but it's turned out over twelve thousand words so I split it up and it will now be three chapters.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything you recognize from the Harry Potter series.

* * *

Ginny couldn't believe she'd gotten herself stuck in this situation. She was sure if her heart raced any faster, the pounding would have her found out in no time. As it was she was using all her control not to gasp for air but breath slow, quiet breathes. It would take an extreme amount of luck not to be discovered but, as she heard them walk around the room, she thought maybe luck wouldn't even be on her side at all. Her only hope was that they didn't round this side of the bed or she'd be spotted easily. Besides, her legs were already uncomfortably cramped from squeezing in the small space she'd deemed fit for cover and she was sure she couldn't stay put for long.

She'd been on a mission, of sorts. Certain occurrences had led her to believe that a student in Hogwarts was officially a Death Eater; and she had to know if it was true. Percy always had told her she was too curious for her own good – she really wished she listened to him sometimes. Now, having been officially proven wrong she felt every bit as foolish for it as she always did when her mind got carried away from her. That's how she'd ended up here, wedged in the small, thankfully shaded, space between one of the beds and cabinets in his dormitory.

She regretted it now of course. Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were playing in a Quidditch match right now. She should have been spending an enjoyable weekend morning in the stands cheering on her friends. Instead she was wishing not to be found and swearing to herself she wouldn't end up stuck in this kind of situation ever again – conveniently forgetting every other time she'd made the same sort of promise before when one (nearly all) of her investigative missions had gone wrong.

She froze as she saw feet coming around the bed towards her or, more accurately she figured, towards the cabinet she was hiding beside. She wasn't foolish enough to think that if she stayed perfectly still she wouldn't be seen. All it would take was a single look in her direction and the shade would do nothing to cover the sight of her. It was an agonizing several seconds before such a thing happened. The feet, it turned out, belonged to Blaise Zabini. His eyes had passed over her, blinked and moved back to her. She didn't doubt that her eyes were pleading with him to remain quiet about her, but that didn't mean he was going to.

"Hey Malfoy?" he asked casually. A slight smirk pulled at his lips and Ginny knew she was done for.

"Yes?" was the drawled response.

"Are you, by chance, stashing yourself a _treat_ for later?"

"What are you talking about?"

Ginny heard the terrible sound of footsteps coming closer. It was just her luck that of the five beds she could have hidden beside it had to be _his_. This was not going to end well. She watched his feet round the bed and prepared herself to either do a lot of explaining or a lot of running.

"If you're not stashing it," Zabini turned to face his dorm mate, "then have I got a surprise for you."

Zabini stepped aside and Malfoy's eyes instantly drew down to where she was, widening just the slightest bit in shock. Finding no more reason to hide, she stood with as much dignity as she could. Concentrating on the task of straightening her robes, Ginny told them. "We'll, I'll just be going then."

"Not so fast Weasley," Malfoy said threateningly. "Care to elaborate what you're doing in my dormitory, beside my bed?"

Resigned to the fact that she couldn't just leave, but not wanting to forfeit all control Ginny put on a thoughtful look. "I don't think I'd care to, no."

"Oh, well," Malfoy said dryly, a sneer making its way onto his face, "if you wouldn't care to then, by all means, be on your way.

"Thank you," Ginny nodded with a sweet smile. She carefully stepped between the two boys, making sure to touch neither. Half way to the door she started to wonder why she hadn't been stopped yet. She wasn't naive enough to think they were really going to let her just walk out the door so she sent a quick look over her shoulder and saw them both watching her with blank expressions. She wondered about their lack of action, but just went along with it. It wasn't until she was at the door that she realized their reasoning. The door was locked. It wasn't that she couldn't unlock a simple door, but she knew the appearance of her wand would be what speared them into action. With a sigh she turned back to face them, "about that explanation."

"Are you ready now?" Zabini smirked.

"No," she said simply, "but I don't want to spend all day in here either so I'll have to manage." The boys just stared, ready for her to enlighten them and she wrinkled her nose. "Should I start with the why or the how?"

"Why," Malfoy answered.

"I'd had a theory I was trying to find truth to so I decided to investigate."

"And this theory was?"

She took a deep breath, deciding the sooner she got this over with the sooner she could be on her way, and answered truthfully. "That you, Malfoy, were now a Death Eater – officially."

It wasn't that Malfoy had done anything particularly evil to make Ginny think he might actually be a Death Eater. He was nasty to anyone he thought deserving, of course, and his mouth still snarled the same vicious insults he'd favored for years, but none of that was new. No, it wasn't his actions that put the thought in her head. It was in the way he carried himself. When she'd first seen him in the hall this year she was aware there was something different about him. He'd always had the sort of presence that demanded attention. She hated to admit it, but there was something about him that just made people, even her, take notice. That day was different. It was like he didn't _want_ to be seen. He was trying to slip through the crowd undetected and it made her uncomfortable. It was then that she decided he was hiding something.

It was nearly two months after that when the real possibility of him being a Death Eater entered her mind. She'd been walking through the dungeons alone, having taken up until the last minutes of class to brew her potion and told her friends not to wait while she cleaned up, when she found herself behind a group of Slytherins. He wasn't actually in the group himself, but she heard his name brought up in the discussion. She hadn't been intentionally listening in, especially since they were speaking relatively quiet, but being directly behind them and not in her own conversation she had little else to hear. That didn't stop her from picking out the three words she needed to hear though. There was no way she'd be able to forget those words and just what they could mean – _Malfoy's new tattoo_.

"You think I'm a Death Eater?" Malfoy asked now for clarification. She nodded stiffly and he went on. "You think I'm a Death Eater and you figured sneaking into my room and hiding beside my bed was a safe and logical course of action?"

"I hadn't _meant_ to hide beside your bed," she huffed. "It's not my fault you two came traipsing in here when you should be at the match."

"You must think us terrible," Zabini said sarcastically, "going to spend time in our own room of all places."

"What were you hoping to find in here anyway Weasley?" Malfoy asked. "Notes with all my evil little Death Eater plans on them?"

"No," she answered moodily, not appreciating his condescending tone for one moment. "I'm not that naïve. I was just looking for any sort of proof."

"And how'd that work for you?"

"Surely you know the answer to that," she grumbled back, still sour her search did nothing but prove her wrong.

"Let's go back to the why," Zabini suggested. "I'd love to hear why you think he's a Death Eater."

"_Thought _he was a Death Eater," she corrected. She pouted over at Malfoy, as if it was his fault her mind got carried away from her. "He was hiding something. I could just tell."

"And your natural assumption was that he must be a Death Eater?" Zabini raised an eyebrow. "Glad to know your biased opinion of us Slytherins falls in with the rest of the Gryffindors."

"I'm not bias," she retorted hotly. "I'll have you know I had good evidence pointing in that direction before I even _considered_ it. I don't just go around accusing people of being Death Eaters. That's serious."

"What evidence could you have had?" Malfoy asked skeptically.

"Your stupid new tattoo!" she blurted out.

"How do you know about my tattoo?" his eyes narrowed. "Only a select few know about that."

"More people do than you think," she said smugly. "I overheard some of your housemates talking about it. Who knows who else could have heard them?"

Malfoy stared at her coolly for several moments before nodding once, believing her story. He turned to Zabini. "I told you I thought I'd caught more eyes straying to me than normal."

"That you did," he nodded solemnly. "Pardon me for not believing you every time you get suspicious."

"I don't get suspicious _that _often," Malfoy rolled his eyes, "and not unless I have good reason."

Zabini scoffed and, in a stage whisper, said to Ginny. "He's kind of paranoid."

"And now you know it's not _that _kind of tattoo," Malfoy said matter-of-factly, ignoring Zabini's smirk and Ginny's quiet laugh. "How'd you find out?"

"You're not wearing a jacket," she pointed out slowly. "Your shirt has short sleeves."

He looked down, as if surprised to hear such news. In turn, she was surprised when, after staring down at his shirt for a moment he spoke up hesitantly, as if he didn't want to know the answer to her question. "You didn't see it as well did you?"

"No," she shook her head and he looked relieved. "I only had the chance to peek up and look at your forearm before having to duck back down to hide. Why? Is it visible?"

Ginny thought it was quite natural that she was instantly curious about what his tattoo could be after his visible relief. What was it that he wanted to hide? She peered at him now, as if trying to see through the white shirt he was wearing and he shifted slightly so his left side was out of her view. She knew then that the tattoo was on his left side somewhere. She figured it must be near his neckline or he wouldn't have thought she'd seen it. She knew her next mission: figure out what his tattoo was.

"You know what I love," Zabini spoke up.

"I'm sure you're going to inform us," Malfoy responded, rolling his eyes.

"She mentions it so casually; like it's natural. _Oh darn, got caught hiding by another boy's bed!_" He chuckled. "It's down right amusing that it's not a bigger deal. Even Pansy would be stammering around the subject trying to make excuses and she hangs out with us in here _all the time_."

Ginny wanted to point out that Pansy Parkinson was a bit of a, well, _pansy_, but before she could Malfoy smirked. "Maybe Weasley spends more time in boys' rooms than we know."

"One, how would you _know_ either way," Ginny retorted hotly. "And two, I happen to have six – count them, six – older brothers. A boy's room is nothing to be embarrassed about. And three, _just shut up_."

"I really don't think you're in the position to be so rude," Malfoy raised an amused eyebrow.

"What are you going to do?" Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yell at me? I can handle it. Beat me up? You wouldn't dare."

"Not sure what I'm going to do yet," he shrugged back. "What do you think Zabini?"

Zabini smirked. "Oh, I've got a few ideas brewing. Before that though, we went over the why, so how about you tell us how you got in here."

"That's easy," Ginny waved a dismissive hand. "I discreetly followed some second years to find out where the entrance was, came back when no one was around and hid, waiting to hear the password, then, when the room should have been empty, I entered."

Zabini and Malfoy shared a look. "That seems… way too easy," Zabini shook his head. "You can't just get into someone's common room that simply."

"I did," she shrugged. "And I would have been back out of here no problem if you two hadn't come back in when you did."

"Didn't mean to ruin your fun," Malfoy deadpanned. "Now, what should we do with you?"

"You should watch me walk out the door and pretend this never happened," she suggested.

"And why should we do that?"

"Because I answered all your questions honestly and without complaint," she said simply.

"You did that on your own Weasley," Zabini smirked. "Maybe you should have worked out the deal for your release _before_ you started spewing out answers."

"So what are you going to do," she huffed, trying to keep the nervous tremor out of her voice. "Keep me trapped in here? People would notice when I'm not around the common room after the game."

"Don't be so melodramatic Weasley. We're not going to keep you _prisoner_," Malfoy rolled his eyes. "Though I question whether anyone would be pressed to attempt your rescue."

"Hey!" she said indignantly. "I'll have you know a lot of people would come to my rescue!"

"Unless you're willing to test that theory, let's just put an end to this," Malfoy decided.

"That would ruin a lot of fun we could have," Zabini spoke up.

"It will also save us a lot of headaches dealing with her." Malfoy cast a glance in his direction and Zabini nodded solemnly in agreement. "I fear she'll get hostile before long."

"Great. So may I leave?"

"Now be patient," Malfoy warned. "You don't get to just leave with out retribution. Don't forget who we are after all."

"I'm hardly likely to forget who either of you are anytime soon."

Zabini let out a chuckle. "That almost sounds like a challenge I'd say."

"It wasn't."

"Zabini, let's go discuss our options," Malfoy drawled, turning and walking away from Ginny. Zabini leveled her with a warning look before following.

Ginny took a deep breath once they were out of range. Without really thinking of exactly where she was she sat heavily on the bed beside her. She was stuck with Malfoy and Zabini and she didn't know what to expect from here on. Though they could have easily been much harsher from the start, they certainly weren't being _nice _with her. She cast her eyes about the room, looking for some sort of escape but knowing there wasn't one; they were in the dungeons. Malfoy and Zabini had wisely moved in front of the door, guaranteeing she wouldn't be able to make an easy escape. The only options she had were to draw her wand and take them down or wait and see what her punishment would be. One look at Zabini's smirking face and she decided she'd best try her hand at the former.

She withdrew her wand from her robes as subtly as she could; knowing Zabini had positioned him self to keep a watchful eye on her and thanking Merlin that the curtains partially hindered his view. She quickly formulated a plan. She'd have to hit Zabini first since he was facing her. Hopefully Malfoy's surprise would cause him to hesitate and she'd get a chance to hit him before he drew his wand. She was good with casting spells, but she knew he was faster. She took a deep breath, readying herself, and raised her wand, firing a stunning spell straight at Zabini. He hadn't been quick enough with brandishing his wand and the spell hit him before he was able to cast a shield. Unfortunately, Malfoy didn't hesitate and had his wand aimed at her and a disarming spell coming from his lips before she could cast her second spell. She watched as her wand flew out of her hand and landed neatly into his with a sour look on her face. Great, she thought, it would only get worse from here.

"I'm surprised," Malfoy raised an eyebrow. "I didn't think you'd have the gall to attack."

"I'm a Gryffindor," she told him stubbornly. "I have plenty of gall."

Malfoy looked over his shoulder at Zabini, who was sprawled on the floor with his wand loosely in his grip. He shook his head and turned back to her. "Care to get your filth off my bed? I've no idea where you've been."

Ginny, realizing for the first time that, yes, she _was _on Malfoy's bed, quickly stood. "Let's have it then," she sighed. "I've made my escape attempts and am now without a wand. What are you going to do?"

He looked her over critically and she wished she could know what was going through his mind. She wanted some sort of preparation for whatever was about to happen. All she knew was to prepare for the worst. He sent another look over to Zabini before turning back to her.

"You better get out of here before the rest of Slytherin come back."

"What?" she blinked.

"We don't know how long the match is going to last. I'd get out of here if I were you." Caught completely off guard she could do no more than nod. She headed towards the door, moving past him and stepping carefully over Zabini. She was out the door before he called to her. "Weasley?"

She turned, knowing it was too good to be true. "Yes?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" He held her wand up in his hand, a light smirk playing on his lips.

"Right," she nodded, moving back to retrieve it. He held it out to her and she grabbed a hold of it. When she tried to take it from him he tightened his grip. He leaned in closer and she tensed.

"We'll be seeing you," he said, releasing his hold on her wand. She left quickly; taking his words as the warning she knew he meant them as. This wasn't over.

* * *

Ginny never thought she'd actually be afraid of a pair of Slytherins. Nervous, sure, she had been nervous when she was caught in their dormitory several days ago. But she hadn't been _scared_. Now she found herself hastily retreating from an area when she spotted either Malfoy or Zabini. She'd regretted her actions later that night when she was laying in bed with the curtains closed. They would have let her go with little trouble, she _knew_ it. She couldn't handle it though - waiting to see what they'd do to anger or embarrass her - so she'd attacked instead. She couldn't even tell herself it was in self defense either; they hadn't threatened her really. She'd been caught in the act of sneaking through _their _territory and they deserved their retribution. Now, she was left to wait for the day they cornered her and got their payback.

The dreaded moment finally came on her way back from Astronomy class late one night. She should have known it was coming then, but she was exhausted from staying up to attend the star gazing portion of class and having spent over an hour trying to locate various things in the sky. She'd passed through the entrance hall and up the main staircase with no problem, but once she turned on to the corridor to get to her next desired flight of stairs Zabini stepped out in front of her. She yelped slightly in surprise and turned to find a different route, only to find Malfoy a matter of feet away from her. She gave them a small, anxious smile, wishing suddenly that she'd rushed away from the tower with the rest of her class instead of lazily straying behind.

"Fancy seeing you here," she laughed nervously.

"What a coincidence, huh?" Zabini raised an eyebrow.

"Let's just get this over with," she sighed. "I'm exhausted and want to go to bed."

"Please," Malfoy smirked, "don't sound so happy to see us."

"Malfoy, I'm serious. This encounter was bound to happen, you know it, and I know it. Now let's just get it over with so I can get some sleep."

"Well if you insist," he sneered lightly. "Zabini?"

Zabini stepped closer to her and she instinctively backed up. "There's no need to be scared Weasley," he laughed. "You're the one who pulls wands on people."

"Because you really didn't expect me to try to escape," she rolled her eyes, taking another step back.

"Escape," he shook his head. "There she goes again, Malfoy, making it sound like we were keeping her prisoner."

"You locked me in!" she said indignantly.

"Actually," Malfoy drawled, sounding horribly bored, "we locked the others out. _You_ weren't supposed to be there."

"Oh," she blinked, thinking that made a lot of sense. They were looking around the room for something themselves before discovering her, she recalled. Of course they wouldn't have wanted to be caught with whatever they were pulling out of hiding – why else would it be hidden? She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What were you locking them out for?"

"Unlike you, Weasley, we aren't in any position to have to answer you," Malfoy said simply.

"I don't have to answer you either," she scowled.

"You don't," he nodded.

"And yet you told us anything we wanted to know during our last get together," Zabini said.

"It wasn't a _get together_," she crossed her arms, a frown settling onto her face. "You make it sound like we're old friends hanging out."

"You want to be friends," Malfoy smirked. "We're touched, truly."

"I _do not _want to be your friend," she said sharply. "You may not have turned out to be a Death Eater, but you're still vile."

"At least I'm not poor," he shrugged carelessly. She felt her cheeks turn hot in anger but didn't have time to get a word in. "It would only be an improvement if you considered us friends. Merlin knows you need all the help you can get with your low class standing."

"And you're going to help me?" she snorted.

"That's not a bad idea," Zabini smirked. "Think about it Malfoy. No more of these pesky Death Eater accusations, we'll be those _sweet, handsome _young men who helped the poor, unfortunate Weasley."

"You can't forget though," Malfoy responded, "we _are _the Death Eater type – pureblooded, rich, better than everyone else, powerful. And once schools over, well, can you call it pesky if it's true?"

"It is when the Ministry's still rounding them up instead of letting them accomplish their tasks to better society," Zabini said matter of factually.

"Hold up," Ginny raised her hands. "You mean you both actually _plan_ to be Death Eaters after school?"

"No, I'm planning on starting up a few very successful businesses," Zabini told her. "The Death Eater part is just a minor factor."

"You're serious aren't you?" she asked, bewildered.

What kind of people actually planned to become a torturer and murderer? Who talked so casually about such a thing, like it was just some summer job they'd be doing? She couldn't believe the pair of them. Admittedly it should not have surprised her as Malfoy was the son of a Death Eater and, well, Zabini shared his ideals, but she was surprised either way. When she'd seen Malfoy's arm and its lack of the dark mark – as she had begun to suspect would be there – she'd felt inexplicably relieved. It was almost like she was hoping that he wasn't one. Not just because Death Eaters are evil, but because she believed it took a truly weak and foolish person to become one.

Sure, a good share of them had power, both socially and magically, but to join an army where it was necessary to follow one man's commands without question or hesitation or you'd pay the price was weak to her. It was a weak person who could not think and act for themselves. After her first year, where'd she been possessed and consequently forced to do things against her will, she'd held high regards for any person who acted of their own accord and not any one else's. It made her angry and disappointed to find out all over again that Malfoy, who for years in school had assumed command among his house mates, and Zabini, who never folded to any one's pressure and simply did as he wished, would willingly forfeit that for Lord Voldemort.

"_Why_," she asked them, her tone bordering on desperation. "Why would you want to do that? Why would you commit yourselves to something like that?"

She could tell her emotion had caught them off guard as they both blinked at her. "It's who we are," Zabini told her. "It's what we believe."

"Why do you have to join them though?" she pressed. She wanted to make them see that they had another choice. "You can have your superior beliefs and still have your control. You _don't_ have to be a Death Eater. You don't have to be a _murderer_."

"We're not here to take lessons from you," Malfoy sneered, clearly uncomfortable with her sudden interest in their lives. "If you remember correctly you snuck into our dorm and attacked Zabini. _That_ is why we are here."

"Do what you must. I don't care," she waved a hand dismissively, turning to Zabini as he seemed more willing to have this conversation. "Listen to me. There are other options. I don't agree with your beliefs but I don't want to see you both fold to the command of a dark and dangerous man."

"What do you know little Weasley," he shook his head pityingly. "It's so much more than that. You're family keeps you sheltered from the harms of the world, from involvement in the war, there's _so much_ that you don't understand. This is what we believe and this is what we will fight for."

"You can't," she pleaded, foolishly feeling near tears.

"That's enough Zabini," Malfoy scowled. "We're not going to have this conversation with her. We have opposing views and it can be left at that."

"I'm going to have this conversation," Zabini turned to glare at him. "She needs to understand."

"It's not our concern whether she understands the dark sides of this war," Malfoy said coolly.

"Maybe it's not yours, but I think she needs to know what she's up against." Zabini turned from Malfoy, back to Ginny. He took a few steps towards her, until he was standing nearly directly in front of her. "You believe that everyone is equal. You think that mudbloods are just as good, if not better, than us purebloods. You're a blood traitor. You will fight for the light side of this war, will you not?"

"I will," she nodded.

"And why will you?" he asked, taking another few steps forward so she now had to tilt her head back to see into his face.

"It's only right," she answered automatically, looking him straight in the eye. "Voldemort and his followers have no right to decide whose life is important and whose isn't."

"And we will fight because we believe our lives are most important," he responded.

"But why do you have to kill people to be more important?" she asked. "Can't you just enjoy the fact that there are so many people below your status?"

Zabini blinked and let out a bark of laughter. "I never thought about it that way. You hear that Malfoy?" he asked, turning away from Ginny and to where Malfoy was scowling against the wall. "If all the lowly people are killed, who will that leave us to be better than? We'd just be _common_."

Malfoy sighed, a very aggravated sigh, "I will never just be_ common_. Do not let her talk you away from our future." He stood straight from the wall, walking up to the two of them. "We will be back to deal with you Weasley."

He turned abruptly and stalked away pausing only long enough to bark, "Zabini!" when he noticed he was not being followed. As Zabini walked away Ginny couldn't bring herself to feel relief that they did not extract their revenge tonight. She couldn't even bring herself to feel nervous about when the next encounter would come. All she could concentrate on was a way to make them see that they were so much better than the Death Eaters.

* * *

**A/N:** I hope you enjoyed this. I was particularly fond of this story as I thought it up – I just hope the idea came across as well when written as it did in my head. I've got a really busy day tomorrow (baking half-moons and coffee cake for 50, setting up for a bridal shower, seeing Alice in Wonderland [hopefully] and then the actual shower itself on Sunday), but I'll post the next chapter when I get home Sunday afternoon.


	2. Hogsmeade

**A/N:** Thanks to everyone who has read and alerted this story. Here's the second chapter and I'm now off for a fierce Disney Monopoly competiton!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything you recognize from the Harry Potter series.

* * *

Ginny had spent all her free time – and unfortunately some of her occupied time as well – trying to come up with a plan to convince Malfoy and Zabini that they were planning to go down the wrong path in life. She hadn't come up with much. At first she thought she just had to do more talking. Zabini had been willing to have the conversation with her and, though Malfoy wasn't, Ginny knew he'd been listening very closely to every word she said. Then she thought maybe she could show them how slave-like Death Eaters really were, but as she wasn't on good terms with a single Death Eater, and didn't plan to be either, she couldn't exactly get one to come and have an intervention. She'd had a fleeting thought of Professor Snape maybe helping her, but she discarded that idea as soon as it came. Not only was she uncertain that she could, without a doubt, trust Snape, but if he _was_ someone she could trust and was truly on the good side Ginny knew she couldn't very well let on to Malfoy and Zabini that he wasn't as devoted a Death Eater as he seemed. The plan came to her, oddly enough, in a dream. It would only be completed at great personal risk, as she'd have to reveal very private information to them and trust it went no further, but she couldn't help but think that if it worked, it'd all be worth it.

It was at least a month before the next encounter came. She hadn't been avoiding them this time, rather it seemed like they weren't too willing to talk to her instead. There were times, during meals mostly, where'd she look up to find one or both of them staring at her across the crowded hall. Ginny got the feeling that on those days they'd been talking about her – or her words at least. It was nice to know she may have actually had an impact on them after all.

It happened on a Saturday in Hogsmeade. She was alone and had just finished up her Christmas shopping, seeing as this would be her last chance before leaving for Christmas break the following weekend. She didn't see them until they were right in front of her; it was snowing and windy and she'd been looking down to prevent the frigid air from assaulting her face full force. For some reason, she found it horribly amusing that they'd choose now to approach her, so when she noticed the two pairs of feet blocking her path and she looked up to them she laughed loudly.

"You would," she smiled.

"I'm sorry?" Malfoy asked, raising an eyebrow at her. She noticed he was wrapped up warmly in a heavy wool cloak over a black wool jumper; the outfit made complete with lined boots, his Slytherin scarf and a fur hat on his head and had a moment of jealousy sweep through her body. Involuntarily she let out a shiver from the cold and she knew he noticed. "Believe it or not," he told her, "we are not – what was it you called us – _vile_ enough to force you to freeze out here. We'll take this inside."

"I'm fine," she told him defiantly, pulling her old, flimsy jacket around her tighter with her free hand and thanking Merlin she'd at least worn one of her thicker jumpers today.

"Don't be ridiculous," Zabini rolled his eyes, sounding annoyed. Ginny noticed he was dressed just as warm. "You're barely dressed. We're going."

Ginny tsk-ed in indignation at his observations; she was most definitely dressed. Still, she knew if they were both of the decision to find warmth there was no use arguing. It was very cold and if she stayed stationary in the snow much longer her clothes would get damp and she'd be bound to catch a cold anyway.

She followed them cautiously. She wondered where they were leading her because every place would be relatively crowded with Hogwarts students. Did they really plan to just stroll in a shop with her as if it were a normal occurrence? She knew if a select few people saw her with them things could quickly escalate to a screaming match with insults and possibly violent attacks – surely they knew that was a possibility as well. Still, she followed them – wondering at the fact that they were so confident that she would, neither turned to make sure she was there – until they reached Honeyduke's and Malfoy held the door open for her.

"Hurry up Weasley," he snapped. "My manners will only last so long."

With that said she instantly felt more comfortable with the Slytherins and walked through the door and straight over to where Zabini was choosing a selection of fudge. Malfoy followed a few feet behind her and when she stopped directly beside Zabini, Malfoy fell into place directly beside her. Neither of them made any move to speak and Ginny decided it was up to her to break the silence. Not wanting to dive right into the heart of the problem she went for a light tone.

"Is this you trying to help my social standing?"

Zabini smirked and turned to her briefly before looking back to the fudge. "In Hogsmeade with Hogwarts students all around?" he asked. "No, to help your social standings we'd be in a much different setting. We'd have to use drastic measures to help you."

"Got it," Ginny nodded, not bothered by the insult, "and when will that be happening?"

"Don't get carried away Weasley," Malfoy sneered on her other side. She turned to him with a raised eyebrow and he went on. "We know you want to go on and be best friends forever with us," he said in a mocking tone, "but you have a better chance of becoming suddenly wealthy."

Ginny smiled at him, which seemed to catch him very off guard. "It's always money with you isn't it?"

He ignored the question, instead going back to her original one. "We're not helping your social standing," he smirked down at her. "We're here to get our revenge."

"In such a public place though?" she raised an eyebrow.

"That's the fun of it," he smirked. He looked up to Zabini and his smirk widened. "And it's just about to get a whole lot more fun."

Ginny turned quickly, expecting Zabini to be up to something behind her back, but instead she found he was still immersed in selecting his fudge and seemingly not paying the least bit of attention to her. She looked over her shoulder to Malfoy, the question clear in her eyes. He just continued to smirk over her and she turned back towards where he was facing. Then she saw it. Malfoy wasn't smirking at Zabini, he was smirking at her brother, who had just caught sight of them and was making his way through the crowd with Harry and Hermione.

She whipped around to face Malfoy again, arms crossing over her chest the best she could with a hand full of bagged purchases. "You play dirty."

"Last time you tried to talk your way out of trouble – distracting Zabini away from his task," he told her. "So you can talk all you want now, but you're still going to regret sneaking into our dorm."

"Trust me," she scowled. "I already do."

"Ginny?" she heard behind her and she turned. Sure enough Ron and crew were standing a few feet away, confused looks on their faces. "Ginny what are you doing with them?"

"That's what we wanted to know," Malfoy spoke up, a nasty tone in his voice. "She just came up spewing out nonsense about us _getting together_ and _hanging out _like she thinks we're friends. You clearly need to keep a tighter leash on her Weasley. This is the _third_ time."

Ron turned a faint shade of pink and was about to say something, no doubt rude, but Hermione beat him to it. "Ginny would not want to hang out with _you_. She's much better taste in friends than that."

"Oh?" Malfoy raised an eyebrow, looking the three of them over with bored eyes. "I can't say that I agree."

Zabini chose that moment to rejoin the conversation with a scowl on his face. "More Gryffindors," he muttered. "We were having enough trouble shaking this one off."

As he gestured to Ginny she felt her own cheeks flush in anger. She was suddenly very aware of what was happening. They were getting her into trouble with Ron who would undoubtedly feel he had to keep a closer eye on her from then on so she wasn't sneaking off to befriend any more Slytherins. They played dirty, but she had to admit she was impressed. If they succeeded and Ron was constantly breathing down her neck from now on, not only would she be steadily annoyed, they'd get a show whenever she lost her temper in public and fought with him. Oh, those Slytherins were good.

"I know," Malfoy shook his head, a scowl now on his face as well, "and I thought this would be the time we finally got her to leave us alone. Now we just have a bigger following."

"I'm not following you," Ginny snapped, not able to just stand by and go down with out a fight. "You make it sound like I've been stalking the dungeons."

Ginny realized her mistake the second the words were out of her mouth. Malfoy turned to her and, though his face was impassive, Ginny saw the amusement shining deep in his eyes. "Can you honestly say that you haven't?"

She was caught. She could deny it, but there would be no point. Malfoy would just enlist Zabini for back up that she was a liar. Still looking into his eyes, she glared. "What I've done in the past is irrelevant."

He smirked. "You can't deny it though."

"You've been stalking them in the dungeons?" Ron asked, looking alarmed at the thought.

"No!" Ginny retorted. "I wasn't stalking them!"

"I distinctly remember hearing that you were stalking out our common room," Zabini added, sounding colder than Ginny had ever heard him sound.

Ginny resisted the urge to shiver but only barely. Any comfort she'd felt with the Slytherins before was gone. It was like they'd reversed roles – Malfoy was being almost playful and Zabini was being nasty. She may have only been around them a short amount, but she did not like this new, harsh side of Zabini. She could only hope that it had to do with their company and nothing else.

"Is this true Ginny?" Hermione frowned. "Were you stalking out their common room?"

Ginny nodded stiffly. "I don't want to be their friend though," she was quick to say. "That was done for other matters entirely."

Ron took a deep breath, trying to remain calm. "Ginny," he spoke slowly, "tell me what's really going on here, _right now_."

Ginny groaned lightly and ran her hands over her face. She looked to Malfoy who was watching with barely concealed interest to see what she'd say then to Zabini who wore a look of pure annoyance. She couldn't help the shiver that time. She knew he noticed it because something flickered in his eyes, but before she could assess the situation he turned his head from her.

"I was doing an investigation," she told Ron honestly.

"Another bloody mission?" he groaned.

She smiled a little and nodded; her family was used to that line. "Somewhere along the line my path crossed with theirs and we've yet to untangle them. It's nothing more."

She hoped that was enough to satisfy them because she had no intention of going any farther into detail. If she mentioned what she was investigating, there was no way she couldn't mention the tattoo. And she knew she would be in trouble with Malfoy all over again if she mentioned the tattoo – and it'd be much more severe this time.

"Do you need our help?" Harry asked, looking at her searchingly.

"Always swooping in to play hero aren't we Potter," Malfoy sneered. "If Weasley needed your help, she'd have asked. I dare say if she couldn't handle herself she wouldn't come to us."

"I wasn't talking to you Malfoy," Harry said tightly. In her head Ginny knew she should cut in before things escalated, but for some reason, she waited.

"And I didn't invite you over to join our conversation," Malfoy shrugged, a smile on his face solely designed to infuriate Harry. "Sometimes, you just can't help what happens – no matter how much you wish you could."

"We wouldn't have had to come over here if you weren't bothering my sister," Ron snapped, taking a menacing step forward.

"Oh?" Malfoy raised an eyebrow, the same smile on his face. He turned to Ginny. "Weasley, tell me, were we, by chance, _bothering_ you?"

Ginny glared at him before childishly crossing her arms again and looking away. "No," she muttered, "they're not bothering me Ron. This is just a misunderstanding."

Ron's eyes narrowed then. "You're talking to them willingly?"

"For Merlin's sake Ron," Ginny snapped, "am I not allowed talking to school mates?"

"Mates?" he repeated, his face taking on that horribly red shade again.

"I told you she wanted to be our friend," Malfoy drawled in a horribly superior tone. "It'll do you good to listen to me from now on I think. Save us all this trouble of unpleasant company."

Before Ron could respond Ginny stepped forward, distancing herself a few steps from the Slytherins so it would appear she was having a private conversation with the Gryffindors even if they were close enough to overhear. "I don't need your help but thank you," she told them. "I'm not trying to be friends with them – that was just Malfoy trying to get on your nerves – but I do have some things I have to discuss with them."

"Are you sure Ginny?" Hermione pressed. "They're very difficult to deal with."

"Honestly," Ginny said, "they're not as bad when you three aren't around. We'd almost settled our situation before you came along. You're really only making it worse."

Hermione studied her for a moment before nodding. "We better finish picking out what you wanted to buy Ron," she turned to the two boys who looked far more reluctant to leave Ginny alone with the two Slytherins. "We still have a lot of places to stop if you want to finish your holiday shopping."

Ron started to argue, but Hermione silenced him with a look and dragged him off. Harry stayed only long enough to tell Ginny that if anything happened she just had to come to them and they'd take care of it before following. With them gone she let out a sigh and turned back to Malfoy and Zabini.

"That was not fun," she glared at Malfoy. "They're confused and that's the only reason Hermione was able to drag them off. I will hear it later. So, now that you've officially made sure my brother was a nuisance in my life, are we even?"

"For now," he smirked, turning to walk away. Zabini grabbed his selected fudge, cut the five people in line to pay for it and they walked out the door.

She blinked after them. That was it? They weren't even going to let her talk? She wasn't having that. She followed them out the door and spotted them a good distance down the road already. They kept walking past the various shops, not slowing down until they reached The Three Broomsticks. Ginny quickly followed them in the door, but as they'd joined Crabbe and Goyle at a table she was uncertain what to do. She thought about it for a minute and then laughed to herself. Of course she knew what to do.

After ordering herself a butterbeer she stalked purposefully towards their table. "Malfoy," she nodded. "Zabini. Crabbe. Goyle."

Crabbe and Goyle looked to Malfoy, unsure how to react to her presence. Zabini raised an eyebrow at her as she set her bags on the table, pulled out an empty chair and sat. "What do you think you're doing Weasley?"

"I figured since our conversation was interrupted we should finish it," Ginny told him. She turned to Crabbe and Goyle with a charming smile on her face. "You both don't mind if I join you do you?"

"Uh," Crabbe said looking to Malfoy again who made no move to advise him either way. Sounding thoroughly confused he answered, "No?"

Goyle answered with a far from elegant grunt that could have easily been taken either way.

"Great!" she beamed. She removed her jacket and hung it over the back of her chair, paying no attention to the looks Malfoy and Zabini were sending her. Once she was settled comfortably she turned back to the four of them. "So where'd we leave off?"

"I don't seem to remember leaving any conversation unfinished," Malfoy drawled.

"It was about a month ago," Ginny nodded. "I don't blame you for forgetting."

"_That_ conversation is not going to be continued," Malfoy said sharply.

"On the contrary," she told him, "I have a few more things to discuss with you before I can lay the topic to rest."

Zabini, who she had been counting on to at least hear her out, gave her a cool look. "We said what we had to say then. This need go no further."

Feeling very put out with his standoffish attitude she slammed her hands on the table and looked at him. "I don't know what your problem is, Zabini, but I've had about _enough_ of your attitude."

Crabbe and Goyle were looking between the three of them sporting the same confused looks from when Ginny had sat down. It was clear they had no idea Ginny had ever even spoken two words to them, let alone enough to say such a thing with out being severely reprimanded.

"Please, feel free to leave then," Zabini sneered.

"What is his problem?" Ginny asked Malfoy.

"It probably has to do with the fact that you're here," Malfoy smirked.

"Okay," Ginny huffed, "and what's up with you?"

"With me?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes with you," she snapped, thoroughly annoyed with the pair of them, "with you and him both. _You_ are supposed to be the nasty one and _he_ is supposed to be the bearable one. Did you wake up and decide you wanted to be each other this morning or what?"

There was a moment of silence before Zabini let out a slight snort of laughter. She turned to him, her eyes daring him to laugh at her. Apparently, that was all he needed because before long he was chuckling away. She looked to Malfoy and saw that, though he wasn't laughing out right, he wore his usual amused smirk. She was sure her face looked just as confused as Crabbe's and Goyle's.

"What?" she asked. She looked between Zabini and Malfoy, who seemed to be having a silent conversation. Zabini shrugged once and Malfoy gave a reluctant nod. "What is so funny?"

"We'll hear you out," Zabini agreed. "As long as you know going into this that we have our minds set already and you are _very_ unlikely to change them."

"I know," she nodded. "I have to try though."

"And it's not happening now," Malfoy told her, his eyes scanning over the other two occupants of the table quickly.

"Good," she nodded, "that's what I was hoping. When?"

"We'll let you know," Malfoy told her.

"And by let me know you mean catching me off guard and alone?" she clarified.

"Naturally," Zabini nodded.

"Fine," she agreed. "Just don't wait too long."

With that agreed upon she relaxed back into her chair, sipping from her butterbeer. They'd agreed to listen and that was enough to give her hope again. Sure, Zabini said they had their minds set, but if they were willing to listen they couldn't be set in stone could they?

"Weasley?" Malfoy asked. She looked up to him. "You can leave now."

She shrugged, "I'm comfortable. Besides, they already said they don't mind me here."

"We're not friends Weasley. You don't get to just sit with us."

Ginny waved a dismissive hand in his direction. She decided to try her hand at small talk. Knowing Malfoy and Zabini were unlikely to answer yet she turned to face Crabbe. "Are you going home for the Holidays?"

He frowned, but answered. "No," he said shortly. "Greg an' me are staying."

"I hope you have a good time then," Ginny nodded. "I'll be going home myself. We're just having a little family get together – nothing as major as usual. What about you two?"

She looked expectantly between Zabini and Malfoy. "Home," Malfoy said shortly. "Mother's having a feast I must attend."

"Going abroad," Zabini answered, "so that we don't have to attend Malfoy's."

Malfoy smirked. "It's appreciated," he told Zabini. "Your mother would have made quite a stir with her appearance."

"We both know she's only invited for appearances sake," Zabini smirked back. "Besides, we're getting away from this awful snow again this year. Well you are all shivering and freezing I will be relaxing on an island beach."

"How can you not have snow at Christmas time?" Ginny asked, wrinkling her nose in distaste.

"I get enough of it the rest of winter," he shrugged carelessly.

"I could never do that," she told the table at large.

"It's a good thing you weren't invited then," Malfoy smirked.

"I like the snow," Crabbe said. Everybody turned to look at him and he stared back as if he had not just said anything at all. "What?"

"You're agreeing with Weasley?" Zabini asked.

"I like the snow," he shrugged. "I like the cold."

"There you go Weasley," Malfoy said dryly, "someone to play in the snow with."

Ginny gave a snort of laughter. "Great," she replied, just as dry, "my life is now complete."

"You'll forgive me if I don't care won't you?" he asked.

"I wouldn't expect anything else from you."

"And on that note," Zabini stood. "I've had enough of her company. I think I'll be going."

"We do have more people to go bother," Malfoy agreed. Before Ginny knew it they were both leaving the table without even acknowledging her.

"So," she said slowly, looking between Crabbe and Goyle cautiously. It suddenly dawned on her just who she was sitting with – the school's biggest, meanest bullies. When Malfoy and Zabini were there she'd over looked the fact, but now it was so obvious she didn't think she could get away fast enough. "I should probably get my purchases back up to the castle before I lose something." They stared back at her, neither saying anything in response. She quickly drained the rest of her mug and stood from the table, shrugging on her jacket. "Thanks for letting me join you. I, um, didn't mean to intrude."

"Welcome," Goyle grunted, catching her off guard. She'd never heard Goyle speak before, let alone politely and didn't know what to think of it. As fast as she could with out looking like she was trying to run away, she gathered her purchases and left.

* * *

**A/N:** My friend is going to read the next (last) chapter over tomorrow and make sure my ending is at the very least acceptable. If all goes well I'll post it within the next two days. If not, I'll just need a few more to revise it and have her reread it. It won't be a long wait since I have a few possible endings in mind.


	3. The Confrontation

**A/N:** This is the last chapter – which means I obviously settled on an ending. I hope you like it and thanks so much for giving this story a chance. Now that this story is finished I'll get back to updating _Everlasting Truth or Dare_ and _The Two of Us_ again.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything you recognize from the Harry Potter series.

* * *

Three days was all it took before they cornered her again. Unlike the last times she hadn't been caught off guard at all though. She'd been waiting for it to happen; spending her time wandering around the castle alone at night, hoping they'd catch sight of her. She had a feeling they had been watching her but deciding not to intrude and only observe. When the night finally came that they came up to her she smiled wide at them.

"I've been waiting for your visit."

"We know," Malfoy sneered. "You've been traipsing around like a friendless moron in empty corridors."

"So you _have_ been watching me," she said proudly.

"Are you looking for trouble Weasley?" Zabini asked angrily. "I told you that you didn't know what you were up against in this war. Do you have the slightest clue how much danger you've put yourself in just these past days alone?"

"This is Hogwarts," she scoffed. "Nothing dangerous is going to get me here."

"You see Malfoy," Zabini turned away from her to face him. "I _told_ you she doesn't understand. She thinks there's no danger in the castle."

"_War_, Weasley," Malfoy looked to her, an unusually serious look on his face. "What does the word war mean to you?"

"What does this have to do with anything?" she asked moodily. "I thought you guys were going to let me talk."

"It has _everything_ to do with _anything_," Zabini growled at her. "War. This. Is. War."

"Do you think I don't know that," she snapped back, angry to find Zabini was still being nasty with her. "All of my family is out there fighting! Even Ron ends up involved somehow time and again. I know what war is. I know the effects it has on people. That's why I don't want _you two_ to become Death Eaters!"

"What does it matter what we do?" Malfoy asked.

"It matters," she gritted her teeth, trying hard not to scream at them, "Because you are not weak. Neither of you are weak. You're both too good – _too strong_ – to be one of those pieces of scum."

"Watch it," Malfoy warned. "That's my family you're talking about."

"And you are better than them Malfoy," she said earnestly, her eyes locking on his with a determined fire burning inside. "You are so much better than your father, your mother, your aunt. They are _weak_ Malfoy. I don't care if you want to hurt me for saying it. This is about something so much more important."

He stepped back from her and Ginny fleetingly thought he may actually hurt her. Before she could find out if that was his plan Zabini stepped forward. He was standing so close to her that she could feel his breath on her face.

"Listen to me very carefully Weasley," he told her, speaking in a slow, low voice. She nodded stiffly, not taking her eyes from his, refusing to back down. "You have _ten_ minutes to say what you have to say. If you do not make your point, and make it well, you will get no other chance. If you do not defuse Malfoy's anger you will find there is danger indeed at Hogwarts. Do you understand?" She nodded again and he stepped back, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at her. "Your time starts now."

"I guess I need to start at the beginning," she said, speaking quickly because she had a lot to say and so little time to say it in. "_My_ beginning, my first year."

She went on to tell them, the best she could with such a sensitive topic, about the Chamber of Secrets. She told them about being possessed – about blacking out – and losing all control of her body. She told them about how she'd come back to herself, in places she didn't remember being and more often than not in complete disarray. She told them how terrified she was to lose control of herself and why she admired strong minded people like them. She told them how she almost lost her life because of it. She told them everything. She'd taken well over her ten minute time limit, as she had to pause often and stumbled over parts, but they had made no moves to stop her. By the time she finished the tale from her first year, the one she'd not spoken of to anyone outside of her family, she was beside herself. There were tears falling down her face and she was shaking slightly from the terror of it all over again. It was a long time ago, but it was something she would truly never forget and never be completely able to move past. She just hoped she could trust them not to repeat any of it.

"You see don't you?" she asked, sucking in a shaky breath. "You see why you can't commit yourselves to such a life, right? Joining them – joining _him_ – would be a fatal mistake. You'd have to answer his commands without question or you'll pay his price. And his price is one even you two can't afford to lose. You are weak if you forfeit your freedom to Lord Voldemort. Fight for what you believe, I don't care. Just don't fight for _him –_ fight for yourselves." She drew in another shuddering breath, her eyes darting between the two of them desperately. "Please," she whispered, "please don't do it."

As she waited for some sort of response from them she noticed, for the first time, that they looked completely lost. It was clear to her that they hadn't been expecting such a personal story and had no real idea how to react to it, let alone her crying self. She figured they had planned on her arguing more, calling them murders and torturers. When it was clear an answer wouldn't be coming immediately she moved to the wall and sank to the ground, leaning against it for support while she composed her self once more. She would wait.

"Merlin Weasley," Zabini spoke up several minutes later when the tears were finally slowing. He sounded like he didn't know where to start or what to think and Ginny did not blame him one bit. "I-you opened the Chamber of Secrets?"

"Not on purpose," she mumbled. To her surprise, Zabini moved over to her, gently lowering himself to the ground beside her. She didn't flinch when his hand landed on her arm, instead looking up at him, her eyes still threatening to overflow with tears and her face red. "Do you understand?" she asked. "Did I make my point? Because my time is up."

"I understand," he said softly. She wanted to cry in relief that he wasn't being nasty to her anymore, but that seemed like such a silly thing to be concerned about at the moment.

There was a shuffling of feet then Malfoy was standing before her. His hand was reached out and he was offering a gray handkerchief made of shiny silk. She accepted it only because he was actually showing concern in offering it and dabbed at her eyes as she willed the last tears away. Malfoy knelt down before her, dipping his head so he could look her in the eye. "I will admit that I am vile and nasty," he said quietly, "but I'm sorry that happened to you."

She nodded, giving him a small smile of thanks. It was a big help, to see them being so kind, but she wasn't looking for their sympathy. "I appreciate the attempts at comfort," she sniffled, "but that was not my intention."

"We know," Zabini said, still speaking softly to her.

"We understand you're point," Malfoy assured.

"So you won't do it then?" she asked hopefully. "You won't be weak?" They hesitated only slightly before answering.

"No, Weasley," Malfoy said, speaking softly to her now as well, "I won't."

"And I won't," Zabini promised. "We didn't realize… we thought you were just trying to lessen the number of enemies. We didn't think you had any legitimate reasons for us to reconsider."

"I don't care if you're my enemies," she shook her head in earnest, feeling elated that they understood and agreed. "You always have been. I'm not trying to change your beliefs, even though I disagree with them. I just care if you're _that_ kind of an enemy."

"Good," Malfoy said, "Because we still believe what we've always believed."

"I wasn't expecting to convert you," Ginny shrugged. "I just didn't want you to give up your control of yourself."

"If there's one thing about me that everybody knows," Malfoy smirked, trying to lighten the mood, "it's that I love to be in control."

"And that he really isn't," Zabini whispered to her with a wink.

"That's just absurd," Malfoy said dismissively. He crossed his arms over his chest, putting on his best superior face. "I _am _in control."

That was all Ginny could take and she dissolved into giggles. Who would have thought they could so easily cheer her up? With every bit of the haughty manner Ginny knew Malfoy possessed he conjured a blanket – which impressed her as she didn't think even Hermione had mastered that spell yet. He leaned over to spread it on the floor of the corridor before he would sit down and that's when she saw it. His shirt had ridden up a few inches and, on the small expanse of visible skin, she saw ink.

"Your tattoo!" she cried in excitement. He straightened quickly, pulling his shirt back to its proper position. "You can't hide it now! I already saw it."

"You did not see anything," he sneered. "Clearly you're delusional after such a display of emotion."

Ginny knew not to take his words as they sounded. And, wiping her eyes one last time with the handkerchief, she stood and moved towards him. "Let me see it," she prodded. "I won't tell anyone."

"No," he said backing away, "it's not your business."

"Oh come on Malfoy," she rolled her eyes, "just show me it."

He shook his head and she paid no mind to the gesture. She stalked straight up to him and pulled his shirt up. He was startled at first then quickly swatted her hand away and recovered himself, but not before she saw what she wanted. His rib cage was covered with a copper colored dragon she immediately recognized from one of Charlie's old books.

"Why the Vipertooth?" she asked, grinning madly at having discovered it.

"I like the Vipertooth," he glared. His tone was challenging, as if he thought she'd laugh at him for it.

"Can I see it again?" she asked. "I barely caught a glimpse of it."

"You barely saw it and you were able to identify it?" Zabini asked, sounding impressed.

"One of my brothers works with dragons," she explained. "When he moved to the reservation in Romania he left a few of his old books behind. I read them when I was bored one summer."

"If you know what it looks like you don't need to see it again," Malfoy smirked.

"That's a terrible argument," she laughed, moving towards him to raise his shirt again. "That's like saying you've already seen the moon so there's no reason to look at it anymore."

"I'm not taking my shirt off for you Weasley," he said sharply, side stepping her outstretched hand.

She rolled her eyes. "Zabini, did you hear me mention anything about his shirt coming off?"

"If there's a second thing about him that everybody knows," Zabini smirked, rising from the ground as he echoed Malfoy's words from before, "it's that he thinks everyone wants him."

"Oh shut it," Malfoy snapped at him. "I liked you better when you were being nasty to her."

"I didn't," Ginny shook her head. "It was awful."

Zabini shrugged. "I never said I wasn't vile either. I'm just generally in a better mood than Malfoy tends to be."

"Well I don't like it when you're vile," Ginny said playfully, crossing her arms.

"Nobody really likes it when another person is vile do they?" Zabini raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't change the fact that they're still vile."

"Oh please," Ginny scoffed. "You two are not as vile as you like to think you are. I knew that since this whole thing started back in your dormitory."

"Oh?" Malfoy questioned. "How did you figure that?"

"You let me go," she said simply. "_Twice_ you let me go unpunished."

"That was because-"

"Don't even bother," she waved a hand. "We all know that deep down you two aren't that bad."

"This conversation is over," Malfoy said.

"Fine," Ginny smiled, "if you let me see your tattoo again I'll stop saying nice things about you."

"Don't go making promises you can't keep Weasley," Zabini smirked. "We know how you are."

She shrugged, trying to appear and sound completely indifferent. "That happens with friends."

"There you go spewing that friend crap again," Malfoy shook his head. "Maybe I'll have to go have another talk with your brother."

"Don't," she said sharply, "_all_ day Sunday I had to deal with questions and accusations from him."

"Glad to know our work paid off."

"Wipe that smirk off your face," she laughed. "And let me see the bloody Vipertooth."

"Someone's getting feisty," Zabini teased. "Quick Malfoy, take your shirt off to calm her down before it's too late."

"Ha. Ha," Ginny said dryly. "Everybody will keep their clothes on."

"Pity," Malfoy smirked. "You could definitely do with a wardrobe change. Is that thing you're wearing supposed to be a shirt?"

"Got to wear what I can afford," she smiled at him. "We can't all be rich you know."

"Oh, I know," he said. "Believe me, I know. It's just another reason you're so unfortunate."

"Another?" she asked. "What reasons is it joining?"

Malfoy smirked; clearly ready to enjoy whatever insults he was going to deliver. "First there's the hair. Then there's that thing you call a brother."

"Let's not forget," Zabini cut in with his own smirk, "there's the fact she's got a play date in the snow with Crabbe."

"Oh no," Ginny shook her head fiercely. "I am _not_ playing with that buffoon anywhere, let alone in the snow. He'd just ruin a good thing."

"But he was so looking forward to it," Zabini said in mock disappointment. "You're going to break his little heart."

"Stop changing the subject," Ginny swatted at Zabini. "If you show me the tattoo I'll leave you alone about it. On the other hand," she smirked, "if you don't, not only will I tell everyone you've got a tattoo, but I'll say it's of a kneazle because you were so distraught over the death of your beloved pet you wanted the reminder forever."

"You wouldn't," he narrowed his eyes.

"Oh, but I would," she smirked. "Don't doubt me. I told you once I'll tell you again. I'm a Gryffindor. I have plenty of gall." There was a short staring contest which ended when Malfoy heaved a very irritated sigh and slowly lifted his shirt. Ginny moved closer, as he'd backed himself several feet away from her, and bent to be level with his ribs. "Very wicked," she told him, "so much more dignified than a kneazle. Have you gotten a good look Zabini? If not here's your chance."

"I've seen it," Zabini nodded, "we share a room."

"How unfortunate for you," she said mildly.

"Very unfortunate indeed," Zabini chuckled. "He's not always as charming as you're used to seeing him."

"You don't have to talk like I'm not here," Malfoy glared at the pair of them.

"So why do you like the Vipertooth?" Ginny asked. She reached out and almost brushed her fingers along the dragon's body but stopped before the contact came. She was sure touching Malfoy's bare side would not go over well for either of them.

"They're fast flyers and venomous," he told her. "What's not to like?"

"I like Hebridean Blacks," she told him, standing up straight and finally allowing him to lower his shirt. "I like their eyes."

"That is such a girl reason," Malfoy scoffed.

"At least I didn't pick the Antipodean Opaleye," Ginny scoffed back. "_That_ would have been a girl-y pick. Besides, have you seen the Blacks' eyes?" Ginny raised an eyebrow. "I'll bring you the book to look at if not. They are just beautiful. What do you think Zabini?"

"I'm fond of the Swedish Short-Snout," he said conversationally.

"And why's that?"

"I like blue."

Ginny gave a merry laugh. "That would be the dragon for you then."

Almost as if the whole encounter had been planned, Malfoy and Zabini turned in perfect unison and started to walk away. When they were half way up the corridor Zabini turned and called to her. "And stop wandering corridors alone. There _is_ danger in this castle whether you know of it or not."

Ginny watched them until they disappeared from sight then shook her head. This was the fifth time they'd parted ways with out actually saying goodbye to her. It was the fourth that they'd walked away from her when she was certain the conversation was not over yet. Still, she couldn't bring herself to mind too much. If the conversations were never finished, that meant they'd always have something more to meet and discuss.

* * *

**A/N:** I know in this fandom that Draco having a tattoo of a dragon is very cliché, but my original tattoo idea fell through when I moved the placement from his shoulder blade to his rib cage. It simply wouldn't have worked right. Sorry. I tried really hard not to make Draco and Blaise suddenly nice people. That's why it seems like their characters are so back and forth sometimes from visit to visit. When it's all said and done though, I hope you enjoyed this.

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_ provided all the information about dragons. I realize not every one owns a copy of the book so I'll give brief info on each dragon I mentioned for those of you who are curious – along with why I picked each dragon for the character I did.

_The Hebridean Black dragon is written to have brilliant purple eyes. I think that would be a fascinating sight and that's why I put it as Ginny's over the Antipodean Opaleye which is written to be "perhaps the most beautiful type of dragon". I also liked the Black for Ginny because, of the two native Britain dragons, it is the more aggressive and I think that fits her better._

_The Peruvian Vipertooth is written to be the smallest of all known dragons, but had to be partially exterminated by the Ministry because their numbers were increasing too quickly and they liked to feed on humans so much that the death rate was getting high. I liked this for Draco because its size may make it look less intimidating than the other dragons, but its fangs are venom filled and, with its taste for humans, it's a killer. I like to think that you shouldn't underestimate Draco, just like you shouldn't with the Vipertooth._

_The Swedish Short-Snout is a silvery-blue dragon with flames that are "brilliant blue and can reduce timber and bone to ash in a matter of seconds". Other than the fact the I liked Blaise's reason simply to be the color he likes, I chose the Short-Snout for Blaise because it prefers living in uninhabited mountain areas and I liked how that matched the idea that Blaise is often a loner, not needing to follow the crowd to be content._


	4. Epilogue

**A/N:** I couldn't just leave well enough alone. I wanted to add a little something extra just so everyone knew where the three stood with each other. So _this_ is officially the last chapter. It's an epilogue of sorts.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything you recognize from the Harry Potter series.

* * *

Things had turned out better than Ginny had thought they would. The few days left between her last big encounter with the Slytherins and departing from school for Christmas holidays were very odd for her. She'd no longer felt a need to avoid the pair and they had no reason to avoid her anymore so they crossed paths a few times each day. In the corridors no more than knowing looks were exchanged, but last Friday, on her way into breakfast, she'd been ambushed as she passed the Slytherin table. Okay, maybe not really ambushed, but she definitely had not seen the road block coming until it was there – in the form of Malfoy, Zabini, Crabbe and Goyle.

Malfoy had sneered at her and mentioned her "play date" with Crabbe. She'd flushed and said she was not, _under any circumstances_, playing in the snow with Crabbe who, to her utter surprise, had frowned upon hearing so. It was obvious Crabbe was still in the confused acceptance stage he'd fallen into the last weekend in the Three Broomsticks. Zabini had smirked at the shocked look on her face, telling her he'd had Crabbe collect all his good snow attire so they could have their snowy adventure before she'd left for the holidays. Ginny glared at him and sidestepped the group, this time being the one to walk away with out a goodbye.

That had been the last time she'd seen them before holidays – having bunkered down in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express with her friends and not moved until reaching the end of the journey. She had thought about them fleetingly, but unlike the last month or so of her life, she was not constantly worrying about what they would do or how to deal with them. When she thought of them now the thoughts were generally wondering if they were enjoying their holidays. She hoped when the break was over and they went back to school that everything would be the same between them. She liked where they were now – friendly but not friends. It worked for them.

Now, on Christmas Eve, she received two gifts via owl; neither package was signed, but she knew who they were from. The first one was a moderate sized box wrapped in shiny silver paper with a gold bow. That was Malfoy's with out a doubt. She'd begun to recognize silver or gray as being his color of choice. The second was a large, heavy box that was wrapped in a brilliant blue color with a purple bow – that was definitely from Zabini. As soon as she realized who they were from excitement bubbled up inside of her. She couldn't believe they actually had gotten her gifts. _And they said they my weren't friends_, she thought slyly. She had sent them something small as well of course – as a thank you for listening to her and considering her argument on the Death Eater topic – but she had never expected anything in return. She took them to her room to open them in private, just in case they were not being as friendly as she thought but rather vile as they liked to think they were.

She decided she'd start with Malfoy's box first as it was the smaller of the two. She pulled the bow off carefully, making sure to keep it in pristine condition as she had a tradition of reusing them whenever possible. When she removed the paper and opened the box she smiled at what was inside. He had sent her two shirts that she didn't doubt were expensive – one black and one deep blue. There was a note settled in the bottom of the box that read, "We can't all be rich, but for once you'll be able to wear something I can afford rather than those rags you call clothes." She shook her head and laughed to herself. Only Malfoy could be thoughtful enough to send such a gift and still insult her with no problem.

When she opened Zabini's gift she laughed even harder. Once she'd removed the bow and paper she opened his to find it was full of sand. There was a note in his as well that said, "You like a Christmas with snow. I like one with sand. Cheers to you getting the best of both our holidays. P.S. If you dig, you'll get a real present." Naturally, she'd stuck her hand straight in the box full of sand, trying to find what else was in there. She dug until half of her forearm was buried in the sand when she felt it. She knew it couldn't have been the bottom of the box because there was a bow attached and she shifted around until she found an edge and retracted her hand with a second box held in it. The wrapping was the same and she wasted no time in removing it. There wasn't a note, but she didn't need one to know why he'd bought her what he did. It was a thick wool cloak very similar to the ones him and Malfoy had been wearing during their Hogsmeade encounter. For being vile, Death Eater types who thought that they were better than everyone else Ginny couldn't help but notice that they were damn well thoughtful.

When she went to bed that night it was with a box of sand stashed beside her bed and a silver, silk handkerchief with a small emerald DM in the corner held tightly in her hand.


End file.
